The Top Five Reasons to Lose Weight Before Joint Replacement

Joint replacement surgery is designed to replace a damaged joint with metal and plastic components. There are many diseases which may require joint replacement after long term wear and tear to the joints. These might include rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis. When disease such as these cause significant disability and pain, joint replacement surgery may be the best remaining option.

In order to reduce the risk for complications and increase the chance of a successful surgery, you might want to lose weight before you have your surgery.

1. Orthopedic surgeons are often concerned with operating on obese patients because obese patients have a higher risk for complications such as deep infections, increased superficial wound infections, poor wound healing, and deep venous thrombosis.

2. The odds for deep infection among obese patients is 9 times higher than those who are not overweight. Those who are obese also have a significantly higher rate of wound infections which is often attributed to the poor oxygenation of the adipose tissue in their body, which increases the wound tension and the endocrine disorders.

3. Increased body weight also causes an increased amount of pressure on the bone where the replacement is taking place, which will lead to premature loosening of the artificial joint, as well as increased failure rates for the artificial joint. A five year survival rating for the artificial joint is only 74% in obese patients compared to 100% in non-obese patients.

4. There is a relationship between obesity and age knee replacement. The age of patients who are obese is 13 years younger compared to those patients who are not overweight. This means that the patients are 13 years younger, and they have to have their artificial joint replaced earlier, causing a higher likelihood that they will require one or more revisions over time.

5. Other scientific findings indicate that obese patients do not lose weight after they have joint replacement surgery and often blame the inability to lose weight on the secondary pain related to the reduced activity levels brought about by the artificial joint. Those who opt to lose weight before, do not use this as an excuse as often.

6. Weight loss can decrease the pain to the point that your surgery may be postponed for a few years or no longer necessary. This is a very important point because artificial joints all have to be replaced roughly every 15 years, so the longer you can delay your need for surgery, the better off you will be in the long run.

It is important to note that patients who are morbidly obese are considered unsuitable for the joint replacement surgery because of their excess weight. In such cases weight loss surgery is absolutely necessary in order to have the surgery.

This can help to reduce the risk of negative side effects and increase the likelihood of successful joint replacement surgery at a later date. The survival of the artificial joint will also be extended if patients lose weight.